Murray facing more sleepless nights as big hitters loom

Simon Briggs

Earplugs, an eyemask and lavender pillows might be the critical items to assist Andy Murray's pursuit of a second US Open title, after the Scot admitted that his dramatic improvement in the 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 clubbing of Grigor Dimitrov had stemmed from a good night's sleep.

Andy Murray clenches his fist after winning a point on his way to beating Grigor Dimitrov at Flushing Meadowsk. Photo: Darron Cummings / AP Photo

Earplugs, an eyemask and lavender pillows might be the critical items to assist Andy Murray's pursuit of a second US Open title, after the Scot admitted that his dramatic improvement in the 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 clubbing of Grigor Dimitrov had stemmed from a good night's sleep.

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Murray facing more sleepless nights as big hitters loom

Independent.ie

Earplugs, an eyemask and lavender pillows might be the critical items to assist Andy Murray's pursuit of a second US Open title, after the Scot admitted that his dramatic improvement in the 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 clubbing of Grigor Dimitrov had stemmed from a good night's sleep.

But then, with the street noise temporarily muted by the Labor Day holiday weekend, he put in a solid 12 hours on Sunday night and woke up a new man.

More uninterrupted rest will be essential if Murray is to continue his progress through a draw that would give most players sleepless nights.

Today's opponent, Kei Nishikori, has so much ball-striking talent that he brings the whole locker-room to an awestruck halt when he is on his game - and he clearly was against the huge-serving Ivo Karlovic in the fourth round, judging by an absurdly low tally of just two unforced groundstroke errors in the match.

Progress

If Murray should progress, next up will be a former grand slam champion in the semi-final - either Juan Martin del Potro or Stan Wawrinka, two men who can punch a hole through the backboard with their high-velocity groundstrokes.

Energy levels are a factor for everyone left in the tournament, but no one has played more than Murray since the end of the clay-court season - 23 completed matches, including three titles.

Murray described how he had received a pep talk from his coaching staff, Ivan Lendl and Jamie Delgado, who encouraged him to push on through the final few days of a gruelling six weeks away from home.

"It was like, 'Look, you've got a few days left here; give it everything you've got. Let's be professional as possible, work hard in practice, and go out there and fight. There's a break coming soon.' That was an important chat to have because I definitely was a bit flat a couple of days ago and I couldn't afford to let that happen against Grigor."